Egypt Threatens Protesters With Live Ammunition

Posted on Sep 12, 2011

After a crowd of Egyptians rushed the Israeli Embassy in Cairo last week, officials invoked the law to say they would use bullets to protect important buildings in the future.

Tensions between Egypt and Israel are high, as among other events, six Egyptian soldiers were killed by Israeli military forces during a border incident recently. The diplomatic situation between Israel and the entire Arab world will become further complicated as Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to present his country’s new “regional foreign policy vision” during a tour of North Africa this week. He is expected to encourage revolutionary Arab countries to become closer allies of Turkey, which has been a partner of Israel in the past. —ARK

The Guardian:

Egyptian authorities have detained a further 92 people and vowed to use live ammunition to protect key buildings following the storming of the Israeli embassy last week, which left three protesters dead and provoked the worst crisis in Israel-Egypt relations for a generation.

“We won’t allow anyone to attack the interior ministry or any police station,” the interior minister, Mansour al-Essawy, told state TV. “According to the law, we will resist … If there is a danger to a building or those present inside the building, we will confront with bullets.”